1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to computer methods for managing secure access to protected resources. General methodologies within this field include password protection, encryption, decryption, cryptography, and biometrics.
2. Description of the Related Art
The below-referenced U.S. patents disclose embodiments that were satisfactory for the purposes for which they were intended. The disclosures of the below-referenced prior U.S. patents, in their entireties, are hereby expressly incorporated by reference into the present invention for purposes including, but not limited to, indicating the background of the present invention and illustrating the state of the art: U.S. Pat. No. 5,944,825, “Security and Password Mechanisms In A Database System,” Aug. 31, 1999, U.S. Pat. No. 5,699,514, “Access Control System With Lockout,” Dec. 16, 1997, U.S. Pat. No. 6,202,158, “Detection Method Of Illegal Access To Computer System,” Mar. 13, 2001, U.S. Patent Application 2003/0149900A1, “System And Method For Providing Multi-Class Processing Of Login Requests,” Published Aug. 7, 2003, U.S. Patent Application 2002/0067832A1, “Systems, Methods and Software For Remote Password Authentication Using Multiple Servers,” Published Jun. 6, 2002, U.S. Pat. No. 5,375,244, “System And Method For Granting Access To A Resource,” Dec. 20, 1994. U.S. Pat. No. 6,397,337, “Unified Password Prompt of A Computer System,” May 28, 2002, U.S. Pat. No. 6,601,173, “Multi-User Internet Access and Security System,” Jul. 29, 2003, U.S. Pat. No. 6,240,184, “Password Synchronization,” May 29, 2001, U.S. Pat. No. 5,682,475, “Method And System For Variable Password Access,” Oct. 28, 1997, U.S. Pat. No. 5,581,700, “Hierarchical Multiple Password Acceptance System,” Dec. 3, 1996, U.S. Pat. No. 5,793,951, “Security and Report Generation Systems for Networked Multimedia Workstations,” Aug. 11, 1998, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,931,948, “Portable Computer System Having Password Control Means For Holding One Or More Passwords Such That The Passwords Are Unreadable By Direct Access From A Main Procedure,” Aug. 3, 1999.